A sweeping account of one of the most dramatic military campaigns in history. Opening in 1811, when Napoleon was at the peak of his powers, it details the complicated series of events which led up to Napoleon’s 1812 march into Russia. Made famous particularly by Tolstoy’s ‘War and Peace’ it is a campaign which has gone down in history as one of the great military disasters. It is largely the story of a huge power struggle between two arrogant, yet extremely able men – Napoleon and Alexander, the Russian Tsar. The speed with which they went from having a close friendship, formed during their talks at Tilsit in 1807, to becoming sworn enemies a few years later, is a fascinating story told with real panache by Zamoyski, and one which clearly exposes the best and the worst sides of Napoleon’s character. In one instance he is the all-powerful manipulator, twisting Alexander round his little finger and enthralling the Russian aristoracy. In the next, he is an angry, uncontrollable and somewhat pathetic figure, throwing furniture out of windows in reaction to Alexander’s letters detailing his refusal to cooporate with Napoleon’s increasingly difficult demands.

The campaign itself is described from the top level down to the experiences of the ordinary soldier. The seminal battle of Borodino in particular is described with real drama, and one really gets a sense of how Napoleon’s tactical brilliance was beginning to wane, costing the lives of many soldiers who might have otherwise been saved. But the most harrowing section of the book is the description of the long retreat from Moscow. It began as a strategic withdrawal, and ended up costing the lives of almost the entire French army as they battled through the arctic temperatures of the Russian winter. How any of them made it back at all is remarkable, and Zamoyski tells many incredible individual stories.

I’d recommend this book to anyone with even a passing interest in Napolenonic history, for it’s not only a detailed military history, but a genuinely gripping and dramatic read, filled with fascinating characters. Something that struck me in particular was how much of the events Zamoyski writes about had a direct link to the conflicts of the 20th century – for it was as a result of the 1812 campaign that Napoleon’s grip on Europe was weakened, and hence the modern Germany began to take shape. It is easy to see how the European superpowers soon became locked into uneasy alliances that were to have deadly consequences. This is the story of a true military catastrophe.

I stumbled into this new, unfortunately named comedy night with fairly low expectations. I’ve spent many a wasted evening sitting in damp pub cellars listening to average comedians flogging their jokes to death, so naturally expected more of the same. However, I was treated to an evening of generally excellent comedy, opening with a strong set from Junior Simpson who instantly charmed the crowd with his tale of smuggling a fruit salad into Australia. Phil Dinsdale followed with a comparatively average set until the evening peaked with the fantastic Carey Marx (pictured). I can’t recommend this guy strongly enough – he’s a gagsmith of the highest order. Baiting the audience into begging him to tell his new joke about rape, he coolly retorted “nah, you had to be there”. Masterful stuff. The evening then took another slight dip with the clearly nervous, if promising beginner Marlon Davis (who to be fair had an impossible job following Marx), before Paul Sinha rounded off with a consistently well-observed act based around the premise of being a butch asian homosexual in an increasingly confused world.

This is a promising comedy night in a great little venue, and if they sort the name out and find themselves a new compère they could be onto something.